Five Ways to Put Your Business on Track This Month:

October 1, 2010

It’s Friday, and it’s the first of the month. Go ahead, click that link and enjoy the harmony while you read this. It’s okay, turn it up…

Everything’s time sensitive, including October. We’ve got 30 days left to really crush it (*I hate that term BTW). The end of the year is fast approaching and we’ve got to finish strong. Here’s five simple things you can do to put October in a sleeper hold and put your business on track this month:

1. Pace Yourself – Ignore the sense of urgency and you’ll fail, but act too hastily and you’ll fail harder. So take it a day at a time, and make the most of each day. Exude patience. And even when you’re feeling impatient, keep that crap to yourself, homie. Everyone is busy, and everything’s urgent… it’s not just you. It’s the world we live in. Stand out by being calm… people appreciate it, I promise. Find balance this month.

2. Zone Out – No matter what you do for a living, I want you to zone out this month. Turn off the email if you’re not checking it, and if you’re head down in your work then put your phone on silent. We turn our phones off at the movies… we should do the same thing when we’re focused on business tasks that don’t require communication. Trust me, there’s more of that kind of time than you realize. It’s okay to log off of Facebook and shut down Twitter too. That crap will eat your life if you’re not careful. Budget time for communication, but budget more time to zone out and focus.

3. Make Your Voice Heard – Okay, this is two things in one, but stay with me. First, I want you to find an audience somewhere (no matter how big or small) and arrange a time to tell those people why you do what you do. Don’t tell them what you do; you’re business card takes care of that for you. Tell them why you do it. And be passionate as hell about it. And 3b.Blog. If you don’t have a blog, start one, and if you have one then use it more. And be passionate as hell about it.

4. Set Boundaries – Start times, end times. Start dates, end dates. Work hours, off hours. Email hours (see item 2). Run your business with some limits this month. Say NO to a project or prospect that isn’t up your alley. Don’t take any crap, but don’t give any either. Find your sweet spot this month.

5. Form One New Habit – It could be something like keeping your email box clean and answered, returning every call the same day, regular prospecting activities, blogging, or keeping your desk clean. Whatever it is, see if you can do it every single day this month. And keep a tally somewhere.

Now that you’re done reading this, go write down a few things you want to accomplish this month and then think of all the little things you can do each day to accomplish those things. Let’s get our businesses on track for a strong finish to end the year. After all, the recession ends with us.